Earliest metal

Earliest metal

We have found six copper objects in the Burnt Village at Tell Sabi Abyad; a remarkable find! The rare objects consist of pieces of raw copper or malachite, which is copper ore. The natural ore was hammered without being heated until the desired shape had been reached.

Metal working was a new craft that was practised on a modest scale in Syria in the 7th millennium BC. At the time copper was used only to manufacture small personal ornaments, like beads and rings, and not as yet for tools. For this, more efficient materials like stone were available. Consequently the processing techniques for copper were simple.

Two pieces of copper ore are irregular in size and turquoise-green in colour. Probably this is carbonate malachite, naturally containing a very high degree of copper. The material is found in the regions of southeastern Anatolia and northwestern Iraq as far as the Mediterranean coast. The two pieces of copper ore were possibly used as a pigment. The green, very striking malachite is an excellent pigment for a green decoration of objects or of the body (for instance as make-up) .